Power distribution units and computers may be arranged in a topology. A power distribution unit (PDU) may provide power to a computer. To the extent that power delivery topologies have been described at all, they have typically been statically described using data input manually and serially. This type of power topology description has been tedious, error-prone, and subject to becoming out-of-date. These shortcomings are particularly poignant when topology descriptions are referenced by power capping algorithms.
A data center may have numerous pieces of computer equipment. Any single piece of computer equipment (CE) may be used at less than its full potential, and thus at less than its fully rated power requirement. Although any piece of equipment may be used at its full potential at any moment, the average utilization of the set of computing equipment may be relatively low. Because underutilized equipment consumes less than its maximum rated power; a data center may be engineered with infrastructure that supplies less than the maximum power that would be consumed if all the equipment was busy at the same time. As used herein, CE refers to a “computer” and/or to “computer equipment”. In one example, a CE may be a piece of information technology equipment that is a consumer of power connected to a power grid that includes at least one PDU. A CE may be, for example, a server device, a data storage device, a networking device, and so on.
Power capping algorithms facilitate engineering decisions concerning power delivery. Choosing the right size of the power-delivery infrastructure includes balancing the cost of the infrastructure against the risk that power demanded would exceed power available. This may occur if, for example, too large a subset of the set of computing equipment in the data center became active at the same time. Power capping systems and methods provide tools for right-sizing power delivery infrastructure. Some power capping systems and methods may dynamically respond to changing conditions. However, to respond effectively, accurate and up-to-date topology maps may be required. For example, a power capping algorithm may require precise and correct information about which pieces of computing equipment (e.g., servers) share a common, limiting, power-delivery component. For example, an algorithm may need to understand which servers are connected to a common circuit breaker. Similarly, the algorithm may need to understand which first-level circuit breakers are combined at a common second-level breaker, and so on.